Ramblings of an Old fart. -
The case of Marquita Johnson is perhaps the most gut-wrenching "poster child" for the damage this system causes. It highlights how a minor administrative issue (parking tickets) can be used to legally dismantle a family. Reuters In 2012, Judge Les Hayes sentenced Marquita Johnson to 496 days in jail. Her 3 children were taken by the state and put in foster care. * The Offense: Failure to pay parking and traffic tickets. * The Comparison: That sentence was longer than the average sentence for negligent homicide in some jurisdictions at that time. * The Financial Trap: She was placed on "private probation" through a company called Judicial Correction Services (JCS). They added their own fees to her existing fines. When she couldn't pay the company their "monthly fee," they reported her to the judge, who then jailed her. Here is the loop hole. Because now it is considered an administrative issue (Contempt of Court) instead of criminal she is not provided an attorney. This is not accidental, it is intentional to raise money on the backs of poor people. Regardless of the destruction it causes. Government Hostility? The "Double Punishment": Marquita later remarked that Judge Hayes didn't just sentence her; he sentenced her children. Even after she was released, she had to fight a secondary legal battle with the Department of Human Services to get her children back.
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